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JIRC REPORT NOT SUBJECT TO FOIA DISCLOSURE

On Friday, the Supreme Court of Virginia ruled that an informal written opinion by the Judicial Inquiry and Review Commission is not subject to disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act. In JIRC v. Zaleski, the court reverses a ruling by the City of Richmond Circuit Court, which had ordered disclosure of the opinion.

In other rulings announced Friday, the court dismisses two petitions for writs of actual innocence (In re Whitfield); affirms a judgment in a will contest involving the inclusion of illegitimate children among presumptive heirs at law (Jones v. Ware, Exec’r); and orders a new trial in personal injury case after two successive hung juries (Roberts v. David R.McGeorge Car Company). The Whitfield ruling means that, to the knowledge of this writer, the Supreme Court has yet to grant a writ of actual innocence since those writs were created a few years ago.

Each of these rulings was announced in a unpublished order, and none will be published in Virginia Reports. Readers of this site who would like to see copies of one or more of the opinions may e-mail me at emmert@virginia-appeals.com . The court’s next opinion day is Friday, November 4.